Venetian blind apparatus for mounting on the interior of the rear window of a motor car



1961 R. A. HAWKINS 3,008,519

0 APPA VENETIAN BLIN RATUS FOR MOUNTING ON THE INTERIOR OF THE REAR WINDOW OF A MOTOR CAR Filed Nov. 13, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I I0 1 4 9 p 1 ml FIG! Nov. 14', 1961 R. A. HAWKINS 3,008,519

VENETIAN BLIND APPARATUS FOR MOUNTING ON THE INTERIOR OF THE REAR WINDOW OF A MOTOR CAR Filed NOV. 15, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 2O 9. J I l -l8 6 i -2 "l6 -|4 i l5 lull/01734 3,008,519 Patented Nov. 14, 1961 VENETIAN BLIND APPARATUS FOR'MOUNTING ON THE INTERIOR OF THE REAR WINDOW OF A MOTOR CAR Rodney Alfred Hawkins, Little Manor, Barnet Lane Elstree, England Filed Nov. 13, 1959, Ser. No. 852,810

Claims priority, application Great Britain Nov. 17, 1958 6 Claims. (Cl. 160-169) This invention relates to Venetian blind apparatus for mounting on the interior of the rear window of a motor car.

The present large so-called wrap-round rear windows of motor cars make it desirable that there be fitted to the rear window a blind which can be raised to prevent discomfort to the rear seat passengers from the sun or to prevent headlamp dazzle by a following car and Venetian blinds have, during recent years, been' used as a rear window blind. Venetian blinds require that they can be raised and lowered and also that the slats can be opened and closed as desired and so far as I am aware there is no Venetian blind at present in use which enables these two operations to be conveniently effected by the driver of a car. The invention accordingly has for its object to provide a Venetian blind apparatus for mounting on the rear window of a motor car which enables the blind to be raised and lowered and the slats to be opened and closed by a simple operation that can be conveniently effected by the car driver.

The improved Venetian blind apparatus according to my invention comprises a- Venetian blind, remotely operable means for raising and lowering the blind with the slats closed or open and-means which, when the blind has been raised to a predetermined position, automatically open or close the slats on further raising of the blind. f

Preferably at least some of the slats of the blind are pivotally mounted on an extensible and retractable car'- rier at each side of the blind and the remotely operable means act to extend and retract the carriers, the slats being movable to their closed or open position under the action of gravity.

In a preferred form of Venetian blind apparatus according to my invention'the carriers are lazy tong devices and each device is connectedto a chain or other conveyor which is movable to extend and retract the lazy tong device. The chain or other conveyor may be endless.

The means for automatically opening or closing the slats on raising of the blind beyond the predetermined position may comprise one or more arms which are carried by an upper slat to extend rearwardly thereof and each of which engages an abutment carried by a fixed part of the apparatus whereby the slats are pivoted to the closed or open position thereof on the further raising of the blind.

My invention will now be further described with reference to one specific form of apparatus which is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a partial perspective view of the apparatus with the blind in the raised position thereof and the slats of the blind in their open position;

FIGURE 2 is a partial longitudinal sectional view of the apparatus illustrating the slats in their closed position, and

FIGURE 3 is a partial side view of the apparatus, partly in section, illustrating the means for automatically closing the slats on further raising the blind from the position thereof shown in FIGURE 1.

The Venetian blind apparatus shown in the drawings comprises a plurality of slats 1, for example nine as shown,

connected together by the usual hanging tapes or the like 2. Adjacent their ends the slats 1 are pivotally connected at their inner edges to lazy tong devices, one at each side of the blind. Only one lazy tong device is shown in the drawings and this is indicated by reference numeral 3. The pivotal connection is effected by clip members 4 each of which slidingly receives one end of a slat and which, at its inner end, is formed with knuckles 5 through which extends a hinge pin 6 that, at its centre, extends pivotally through a central pivot 7 of a lazy tong device. It will be seen that the tapes 2 are secured to the outer ends of the clip members. The slats are urged downwardly under the action of gravity to a substantially horizontal position in which the outer surfaces of the knuckles 5 engage links of the lazy tong devices whereby further downward movement of the slats is prevented.

The apparatus also comprises two channel members one at each side of the apparatus. Only one channel member is seen in the drawings and this is indicated by reference numeral 8. Each channel member has inturned flanges 9 providing a slot 10 extending from the top to the bottom of the channel member. The lazy tong devices 3 extend over the slots 10 in the channel members 8 and the lower end of each device is bolted at 11 to its channel member. Each lazy tong device is anchored along its length to its channel member by means of annular slides 12 each of which has a centrally disposed annular groove slidingly receiving the inturned flanges 9 of the channel member and which is secured to or integral with a central pivot 7 of the lazy tong device. The annular slides 12 are suitably formed of nylon or other plastics material having some resiliency and are suitably spaced along the lazy tong device.

The upper end of each lazy tong device is bolted at 15 to a run of an endless belt 13 whichis housed within the channel member and runs over rollers 14 rotatably mounted at the upper andlower ends of the channel member. The upper roller 14 is rotatably mounted in a U-shaped member 16 which is adjustable axially within the channel member whereby the tension in the belt 13 can be varied. Adjustment of the tension in the belt is effected by a screw. 17 which passes through the upper end wall of the channel member and is screwed into a nut 18 fixed to the bight of the U-shaped member. The lower rollers 14 are keyed to a transverse shaft 21 and each roller has'fixed thereto a sprocket wheel 22.

Fixed toeach uppermost clip member 4 is a U-shaped member providing two arms 19 which extend rearwardly to either side of a channel member and the sides of the channel member at the top thereof have secured thereto abutment-s 20 which, when the slats are raised to the position shown in FIGURE 1, engage the arms 19 to tilt the uppermost slat and thus all the remaining slats to the closed position thereof, as shown in FIGURE 2. The tilting of the uppermost slat by engagement of the arms 19 with the abutments 20 is shown more clearly in FIGURE 3, the arrow indicating the direction of movement of the slat from the open position thereof, represented in chain lines, to the closed position, represented in full lines.

The two channel members are provided with means whereby they and thus the whole apparatus may be secured in operative position on the rear window of a car. The securing means may comprise clip members (not shown) adapted to be engaged behind the rubber moulding at present used to secure and seal the rear window, or they may comprise rubber suckers.

With the blind in its lowered position the slats extend substantially horizontally one above the other in a closely spaced stack. They may be raised by means of a remotely operated flexible drive 23 connected to a sprocket wheel 25 engaging a sprocket wheel 22 which is caused to drive the other sprocket wheel 22 by means of the transverse shaft 21. On rotating the flexible drive the belts are moved to extend the lazy tong devices 3 and thus raise the blind with the slats in the open position thereof. This continues until the blind is nearly fully raised when the arms 19 on the uppermost clip members 4 engage the abutments 20 whereby the slats are tilted to their closed position. The friction in the drive will normally hold the slats in the closed position thereof but further means for so doing may be provided if desired.

Should it be desired to open the slats this may be very conveniently done merely by operating the flexible drive 23 to lower the blind slightly so that the arms 19 on the uppermost clip members clear the abutments 20 and the slats under the action of gravity move to their open position. The slats may, when desired, be readily again moved to the closed position thereof merely by raising the blind slightly and the blind may be fully lowered equally readily when desired.

The flexible drive may advantageously include a stepup gearing so that the complete raising or lowering of the blind may be eflected by about one revolution of an operating knob for the flexible drive.

It is not necessary that the drive belts should extend substantially the whole length of the channel members and they could extend for, say, half the length of the channel members. Furthermore, all the slats need not be connected to the lazy tong devices.

To prevent the front faces of the slats from being damaged by the clip members when the slats are moved to their closed position the clip members are provided with soft pads 24 suitably positioned to engage the slats in their closed position.

The control knob for the flexible drive may be positioned to be readily accessible to the driver of a car and it will be understood that the improved apparatus of the present invention enables a Venetian blind to be raised and lowered and the slats thereof to be opened or closed by means of a simple rotary movement of a single control knob.

In the apparatus shown in the drawings: the slats are urged to their open position under the action of gravity. They could however be arranged so that they are urged to the closed position thereof under the action of gravity, the cooperating arms 19 and abutments 20 then acting to move the slats to the open position thereof.

My invention also includes a Venetian blind apparatus comprising a Venetian blind, a lazy tong device at each side of the blind, at least some of the slats of the blind being pivotally mounted on the lazy tong devices, and

and each lazy tong device being fixed at one end to a fixed part of the apparatus and the slats being pivotally mounted on the lazy tong devices for movement between open and closed positions thereof, means for extending and retracting the lazy tong devices to raise and lower the blind, an abutment on a fixed part of the apparatus,

' and rearwardly extending means on an upper slat which,

when the blind has been raised to a predetermined position with the slats. in one of the positions thereof, engage the abutment to pivot the said upper slat and thus all the slats to the other of the said positions thereof.

2. A Venetian blind apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein each lazy tong device is anchored to a channel member and an endless movable conveyor for extending and retracting the lazy tong device is housed within the channel member.

3. A Venetian blind apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein each channel member has inturned flanges providing a slot and the lazy tong device is anchored to the channel member by slides each secured to the lazy tong device and each provided with a groove slidingly receiving the inturned flanges.

4. A Venetian blind apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the slats are pivotally secured to the lazy tong devices by clip members which are secured to the slats adjacent the ends thereof and which are pivoted on central pivots of the lazy tong devices.

5. A Venetian blind apparatus comprising a plurality of slats connected together by hanging tapes, a lazy tong device at each side of the blind, said lazy tong devices extending in a plane parallel to the plane of the blind and each lazy tong device being fixed at one end to a fixed part of the apparatus and the slats being pivotally mounted on the lazy tong devices, and a conveyor which is connected to each lazy tong device and is movable positively to extend and retract the lazy tong device to raise and lower the blind.

6. A Venetian blind apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein the conveyor is endless.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

